Usain Bolt of Jamaica set a world record in the men's 100m, clocking 9.72 seconds at the Reebok Grand Prix meeting at Icahn Stadium in New York on Saturday.

Usain Bolt of Jamaica crouches beside the new men's 100m world record he made at the Reebok Grand Prix meeting at Icahn Stadium in New York on Saturday, May 31, 2008.

Bolt bettered the mark of 9.74 set by countryman Asafa Powell last September.

The 21-year-old, the 200m silver medalist at the world championships, dashed out perfectly at the start after a false start and touched the finishing tape ahead of 100m world champion Tyson Gay.

Gay finished second in 9.85, with his fellow American Darvis Patton a distant third in 10.07.

"It was a great start," Bolt said, "I've been working hard at that. I gave you what you wanted."

Earlier this month, Bolt stunned the athletics world by running a 9.76 in Jamaica, the second fastest time ever registered and only his third competitive race over the distance.

(Xinhua News Agency June 1, 2008)